Ideas are like used cars. They may be new to you, but generally they have already been thought of by someone else. I heard an idea this last week that was new to me. It brought me encouragement. It might bring the same to you. Rebecca works in our office for Lutheran Special Education Ministries. This is an excellent ministry […]
“A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” So said Juliet pining over Romeo. You don’t have to know Shakespeare to know that line. A thing is what a thing is regardless the name. That’s not disconnected from this. Dallas Willard wrote in Renovation of the Heart, “Arrogance of doctrine or arrogance of tradition is still arrogance. It […]
A lot of churches are dying. That’s true in this denomination and that one. Lots of them. Lots of churches are dying in lots of denominations. You may be a member of one of them; everyone just holding on until the last member goes to glory. Is your church dying? I hope so. But not that way. Not in the […]
The Church seems to be fascinated with numbers. How many in worship? How many baptisms? What’s your budget? Gallons of ink, literal and electronic, have been spilt sorting through data as it relates to the Church. Of course George Barna is the Data King. And what his organization pumps out directs the conversation all over the Church about what to […]
Read lots. One of the best ways to read lots is to read a little bit every day. Over the course of sixty or seventy years if you read a little bit every day, it will add up to lots! Read the Bible. Aggressively. Plan to make it through the entire Bible at least once a year. While this is a topic I covered […]
Someone has said an organization will only go as far as it is able to raise up leaders. That’s gotta be at least mostly true. Follow this link to a fool proof way of raising up leaders in your congregation. https://concordiamarket.com/product/toward-significance-learning-community/ Leadership Pathway provides all the materials necessary to raise up eight to twelve leaders annually better prepared for meaningful […]
Hope is a fundamental human experience. Hope is central to Christian experience. I hope so. You and your family are deciding where to eat dinner. You have one place in mind, your favorite. The kids have another. One of them says, “Let’s flip a coin.” Will you end up going to the place you like best? You say, “I hope […]
Do you want to see 100% improvement in life? Instead of trying to do one thing 100% better do 100 things 1% better. The math does not work– the approach does. Where do you want to be when you are 80? Too often we only think such a thought in terms of money. What about health? What about family? What about […]
It has been said, “You can’t give away what you don’t have.” I like that. When it comes to sharing Jesus with others, we can’t give away what we don’t have. We cannot give away a solid, mature testimony of the Biblical Jesus if we do not have it. And the surest way to be able to have plenty to […]
Do you have a stack of books you think you should read? Does such a stack cause anxiety and guilt? Do you feel like you are missing out or falling behind others who read more? Me too. That’s why I am glad to come across books whose titles are so clear and succinct that you would not really need to […]